William "Hicks" Anderson Community Center Task Force Established by Executive Order 2013-001

Posted on 08/15/2013 2:44 pm

Mayor Dennis P. Williams signed Executive Order 2013-001 to establish the William "Hicks" Anderson Community Center (WHACC) Task Force and to work with Wilmington City Council to address the critical issues of children’s achievement and neighborhood development. The Task Force will provide the Mayor and City Council with recommendations regarding a comprehensive renovation plan and the potential for construction of a new, updated facility.

The Task Force will be a coalition of members from the Administration, City Council, civic leaders, and youth committed to the advancement of WHACC and the development of a coordinated system of services, opportunities, and resources to support and improve the lives of Wilmington youth and their families.

“My Administration and City Council continue to explore and implement methods for creating a plan to improve the City’s community organization and youth development,” said Mayor Williams. “We are creating this task force to develop a comprehensive plan that will hopefully lead to a higher-quality facility and increased programming opportunities.”

City Council President Theo Gregory today thanked Mayor Williams for establishing a group to assess the future of the City’s only owned and managed community center. “The Mayor and City Council have been discussing in recent weeks not only the importance of the Hicks Anderson Center to the local community and the City as a whole, but also the need to focus on the center’s future,” said Council President Gregory. “We are very pleased that the Mayor has acted quickly and decisively to get a working group up and running to look at the brick and mortar issues regarding the center and most importantly how the center can better serve our youth and their families. City Council looks forward to working with the Mayor and the community on this effort.”

The WHACC Task Force will be comprised of 11 members: the Director of Parks and Recreation, the Office of Management and Budget Director, the Commissioner of Public Works, the Director of the William "Hicks" Anderson Community Center; two representatives from City Council, the Chair of the Education, Youth and Families Committee and Fifth District Councilmember; and five community stakeholders.

The community stakeholders will be appointed by Mayor Williams and must have demonstrated skill or expertise in the various fields of architecture, construction, engineering, finance, youth program development and display a vested interest in the future of WHACC. Two of the community stakeholders must be between the ages of 15 and 30 years old. The Chair of the WHACC Task Force will be one of the community stakeholders appointed by Mayor Williams.

The WHACC Task Force is to provide their recommendations to Mayor Williams and City Council by June 30, 2014.

“I look forward to working with the Task Force and City Council to build upon a community center that has such a longstanding history within the community,” said Mayor Williams.